Lonely Winter
by WindowChild
Summary: Thanks to coincidence, Thalia and Rachel are left to bond during a snowstorm. Written for Eclipse of Athena's contest!


A/N: Lo and behold, I'm actually writing a PJO fic! It's been a while, hasn't it? Anyway, this is for **Eclipse of Athena's** one-shot challenge, for a moment of friendship between two characters. I picked Rachel and Thalia, because I felt like it.

The December air stung Rachel's chin, turning her freckled skin a pale shade of primrose. She was running very quickly now, trying to reach her taxicab before the wind froze her completely.

She slammed the yellow door with a sigh, babbling out a random address to the driver. She'd looked it up the night before, intending to find a street that was the perfect distance away from Camp Half Blood. It was unnecessary, maybe, but it was another way to avoid her father's endless calls. Yeah, she was spending her winter break at an alleged camp reunion, rather than going home. So what? Who cared? Evidently he did, as he had decided to flood her voicemail with nags and threats.

Shaking an abundance of snowflakes from her red curls, she tried to gather her thoughts together. Yes, her first few months of school hadn't been so terrible. She had made friends, actually, with other girls like her; girls with unwanted privileges and parents who wouldn't stay out of their lives. Even so, she didn't want to talk to her father. She didn't connect him with school anymore; she connected him with all of the bad things that had come before it. Her childhood, all the years of feeling second best to his business. Those were the only memories associated with his chiseled face.

Before she had a chance to come to a complete decision, the cab's tires spun themselves to a halt. Rachel paid and got out of the car, feeling an unusual apprehension bubbling inside of her. She was not a nervous person, and so she suspected it was mostly excitement. Or she hoped that it was, anyway.

The remaining walk to camp left her winded, and so she sat herself on the frozen sidewalk, admiring the falling snow. It was practically a blizzard, but she knew that it would disappear once she stepped into the camp's boundaries. They didn't have weather or something, she remembered. In its way, this made her a bit nostalgic. She couldn't imagine a winter without snow.

Finally, when she realized she was no longer panting, she readied herself. Her suitcase was in hand, her blue knit cap on her head. She felt as if she was missing something, but her uncertainty left her to forget it. With a deep breath and a glowing smile, Rachel made her way back to Camp Half Blood.

She was met by virtual silence. The twins, whose names she had forgotten, were playing catch on a nearby porch. But other than that, the place was empty.

Percy and Annabeth were at Sally's, she knew. Percy had invited her along, but Annabeth's silent accompaniment and tight-lipped smile led her to decline. Nico was here somewhere, she'd been told. She was actually excited to see that kid again. They'd started chatting, during her last few days or so, and she had grown to like him. Besides, he was one more familiar face.

"Rachel!" Chiron bustled towards her, seemingly from nowhere. "It's wonderful to have you here." The two hugged, and Rachel realized that the corners of her mouth were hurting from smiling so much.

"Where is everyone?" she asked, as he let go of her. "It's so… quiet." She gave a little chuckle, waiting for his answer.

"Oh, did you hear, my dear? Nico and Grover decided to go with Percy this year. Sally's throwing a Christmas party."

"Oh…" Rachel replied, feeling stupid. A part of her wanted to call Percy, and ask if she could tag along, but it felt too late now. And even though she and Annabeth had gotten over most of their differences, she was fairly certain that the other girl didn't want her there. She couldn't blame her, really. "Well, is anyone around?"

"Actually, yes," Chiron said, putting a hand on her back to guide her in a certain direction. "Someone else who thought that the place would be full of people. Come with me." He pulled her along, as Rachel quickly thought over her roster of friends. Or acquaintances, really, as they were mostly friends by association. She couldn't think of who was unaccounted for.

"Thalia," Chiron called brightly, waving the dark-haired girl over. "Rachel's here."

"Hi," Rachel greeted, giving a faint wave. She'd met Thalia, briefly. During the war, when there was really very little time to socialize.

"Hey," Thalia replied, casually reciprocating the gesture. She was lounged casually against a bench, her face subdued. She had expected to see more friends too, Chiron said.

"I'll leave you girls to talking," Chiron said, leaving them both behind with a warm smile. As he disappeared into the Big House, Rachel found herself feeling irked. She didn't know Thalia at all, why was Chiron acting as if they were old friends? It wasn't as if she were shy or anything, but still. This wasn't what she had wanted.

"So," Thalia said, her lips bright red. "Were you expecting some big crowd too?" Her blue eyes caught on Rachel with insight, practically reading her mind.

"Not exactly," Rachel replied. "I knew – I knew that Percy and Annabeth weren't going to be here." She began twiddling her thumbs, just for something to do. "But I didn't know about everyone else."

"Ah, yeah, me too." Thalia shook her head, snorting with wry laughter. "Actually no, I thought Percy and Annabeth would be here too." She continued to twist her neck from side to side, changing her gaze to the bright sky. It looked out of place without the constant flow of snowflakes. "I got special permission from Lady Artemis, just to visit them," she said quietly, looking back at Rachel. Several beats passed them by. "Do you know what that means?"

"Of course, I know what it means," Rachel answered, unable to help feeling insulted. She wasn't quite as ignorant as everyone seemed to assume. "Wow, that sucks then," she said, her eyes fully meeting Thalia's for the first time. "Too have it all be for nothing."

"Uh-huh," Thalia replied, folding her arms. "I have to go back tomorrow." She paused, clearly hesitating. "Don't tell them I was here, okay? I don't want Annabeth to start feeling guilty."

"Okay," Rachel agreed, "I won't." It was a strange conversation they were having, considering they'd barely talked before. She nearly laughed, realizing that all demigods' conversations were probably a bit off.

Time lapped insistently against their toes, passing them quietly. For the moment, conversation had died. Rachel felt her cheeks going red, for no particular reason. She was usually so good at making arbitrary small talk; she wasn't quite sure what was making her so quiet today.

"So, why are you here?" Thalia asked, cocking an eyebrow. "You have a family, right?"

Rachel shrugged. Really, her parentage was hardly better than any of the demigods'. "I guess."

Thalia considered to stare at her, and Rachel realized she hadn't answered the question.

"Oh, well, I don't know. I guess I just wanted to see everyone. And I have certain," she waved her hand in a circle, trying to come up with the right word, "Duties."

"Oh right, the Oracle thing," Thalia said, nodding along. "I see."

Rachel nodded too. "Yeah."

More silence followed, as they weren't sure what else to say. "Well, they're not here," Thalia said, after a while. She almost sounded impatient. "Why don't you go home?"

"I – I…" Rachel looked around, trying to find a reason. "I already came all the way out here, it would be stupid to go home now."

"Don't you live in Manhattan?"

"Yeah, but…" She stared down at the tabletop. "I like it here."

"Ah, okay." Thalia held up her hands, backing off. She seemed to realize she had struck a nerve. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Rachel replied, smiling again. She was not one to get fussy about these things. "No biggie."

"So…" Thalia continued, looking around. "I have about ten hours before I have to get back to the hunters. What do you think I should do?"

"What do _I _think you should do?" Rachel echoed, surprised. "Um… Ooh, hey, I know." She continued to grin. "Come outside with me, and see the snow."

"Outside of camp?" Thalia's eyes widened. "Oh, I don't know. Is that safe?"

"Sure," Rachel replied, even though she had no idea. "There've hardly been any monsters for months." Again, she wasn't sure. "Come on, you have to see it. Snow's awesome."

Thalia cracked a small smile. "I have seen it before, you know."

"Right," Rachel said. "Well, you should see it anyway. We can make a snowman or something!"

"Okay," Thalia consented, shrugging. She felt almost taken aback by someone as bubbly as Rachel. Half bloods, by nature, were stubborn and self-pitying. Rachel may have been these things too – she didn't know her well enough to say – but the redheaded girl also seemed to be thoroughly energetic. It was refreshing.

They made their way back out of campgrounds, the Stoll brothers waving as they passed. Rachel was in the lead now, Thalia following her reluctantly. Personally, she had never had any real affinity for snow, but there was no reason for her not to go along.

"Wow," she murmured, once they'd gotten outside. "There's a lot of it."

"It's been snowing all week," Rachel replied, instantly digging her fingers into the white fluff. She even pressed some against her cheek, and Thalia grinned at her.

"Hey, I have a question," Rachel said, after they'd been sitting for a few minutes. She'd regained some of her usual fire, feeling much more comfortable out here in the cold. "You have to practice abstinence too, right?"

"What?" Thalia fell backwards from her seated position, laughing with surprise.

"I only wondered," Rachel continued, "Because it's something I have to do too, sort of, and I've been wondering how hard it is."

Thalia considered this, wanting to give an honest answer. "It isn't bad until there's someone you really love," she said finally, feeling this was about as truthful as she could get.

Rachel stared up into the milky sky, processing this. "I don't think there is."

"Then you should be fine," Thalia said. She couldn't help the way her shoulders tensed, her chest aching with twisted jealousy.

"But what if I fall in love?" Rachel asked. The corners of her eyes crinkled and she bit her lip.

Thalia sighed. "You just have to play it by ear. Hope for the best."

"Well… Have you ever been in love?" Rachel asked. She didn't want to pry, but she was dying for some sort of confirmation.

There was a painfully long moment as Thalia stared Rachel down, trying to read her. "Yeah, I have." Her voice was rough but undenying, her body language a mask of carelessness.

It was now Rachel's turn to feel apologetic. "Oh, I'm sorry," she said at once, "I didn't mean to…"

"It's fine," Thalia interrupted quickly. "There were other complications too, I mean. He's – he's dead now." She looked up, her blue eyes sad, but also something else. It was clear that she was unused to sharing so much.

"Right," Rachel said, awkwardly trying to pass this off as the norm. "I'm sorry," she repeated.

Thalia waved her away with a hand. "Anyway, like I was saying, it's not too bad."

"Okay," Rachel said, smiling. "Good to know." There was a click of recognition as she realized who Thalia was probably talking about. "Um, I'm sorry for dragging you out here." She had her own boots buried in the stuff, but it was clear that Thalia wanted to go back into camp walls.

"No, it's fine," Thalia answered, shaking her head. "You know what, I think I'm actually going to go find Lady Artemis. I should probably spend the holidays with my "family", right?" She put her fingers up to physically quote "family" and Rachel nodded. She worried just a little that she'd driven Thalia away, but there was nothing she could do about it anyway.

"Do you like having them as your family?" Rachel asked. She hugged her knees against her cream-colored parka, feeling badly about being so inquisitive. She couldn't help it, though. Curiosity came naturally to her, and Thalia's entire story was just begging to be unraveled.

Thalia caught them both off guard by scooting closer to Rachel, looking her right in the eyes. "Let me put it this way; don't take for granted what you have, Rachel. Go and spend Christmas with your dad."

Before taking in Thalia's actual meaning, Rachel noticed two things. Number one, it was the first time her name had been used. Number two, Thalia somehow had remembered that it was her father who was the problem in her life.

"I don't want to," Rachel confessed. "I don't want to see him." She felt almost childish, the way her voice grew squeaky and her limbs determined to stay put. She didn't want to go.

"I know you don't," Thalia said, her grizzly exterior shifting to show something gentler, "But you'll regret it if you don't. Believe me, it's something I have to live with forever."

In this moment, Rachel was pretty sure they understood each other. Their eyes met, and they each knew that they were not so different at all. Demigod, Oracle. That wasn't what mattered. They had the same story to tell, the same struggles facing them in the future.

"I'll try," Rachel said, after a moment. She lay down, the flakes blowing around her hourglass frame. "But I'm not promising anything, just in case, you know, I get tracked down by Harpies or something."

Thalia laughed at the lame humor attempt, lying beside Rachel. "It was nice to officially meet you," she said.

"It was?" Rachel asked, her surprised tone making them both laugh.

"Yeah, it was," Thalia said, nodding. "And thanks for getting me to um, talk and stuff."

"No problem," Rachel replied. "You should probably do it more often."

"Yeah…" Thalia said. They lay there for a while, peacefully breathing in and out, neither wanting to disturb the blissful quiet.

"It's getting late," Thalia remarked, after a good hour and a half had passed them by. "We should both go."

"Oh hey, do you want to make snow angels first?" Rachel asked, a few stray flakes clinging to her eyelashes.

"How – how do you do that?"

"Here, I'll show you." She spread her legs and arms, moving them back and forth to make the shape of an angel. Eventually Thalia joined in, and the two continued laughing as they made their angels, proud to be leaving an imprint of their day.

A/N: That's it : ). I hope you all liked it, and don't let your Rachel biases get the better of you (I quite like her, but that's another story)! Anyway, like I said, this is for **Eclipse of Athena's **contest. Thank you for inspiring me to write this! Please review everyone!


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